University Report: JV3301 Assessment 1 - M&S Managerial Role Analysis

This report provides an analysis of the managerial role at Marks & Spencer (M&S), a multinational retail chain. It begins with an introduction and a company profile, outlining M&S's mission, values, and market position. The report then identifies and examines the key functional areas within M&S, including sales and marketing, human resources, and finance, highlighting their specific responsibilities and interdependencies. The role of managers is explored, emphasizing their functions in training, staffing, and overseeing operations, along with the necessary leadership, collaboration, and communication skills. The report also delves into change management within M&S, describing how the company handles transitions in processes and technologies, and the crucial roles managers play in communication, advocacy, and employee support during periods of change. The conclusion summarizes the key findings, reinforcing M&S's success through effective management and its market leadership in various retail sectors. References to relevant academic sources are also provided.

Bloggs_J_s0123456_JV3301_Assessment001
Assessment 1

Bloggs_J_s0123456_JV3301_Assessment001
Table of Contents
Introduction 3
Company Profile 3
Functional Areas 4
Role of a Manager 5
Change Management 6
Conclusion 7
References 8

Bloggs_J_s0123456_JV3301_Assessment001
Introduction
The aim of this report is to assess the managerial role at Marks & Spencer.
Marks & Spencer is a multinational retail chain that operates across the globe for
capturing customers looking to buy clothing, home and food products. This report shall
analyse the company profile by determining the organizational mission and goals.
Further, the functional areas of M&S are determined as sales and marketing, human
resource and finance. The role of managers are determined that help M&S in running
successfully. The motive of change management is discussed. The ways in which the
change management is handled at M&S is also explained in a brief manner.
Company Profile
Marks & Spencer is a British multinational retail chain that is headquartered in
London. The organizational mission is to make high quality products accessible to all.
The core values of the organization are quality, value, innovation and service. The
company specializes in selling clothes, food products, home improvement products and
multiple other categories. M&S have 1,433 stores across the globe selling own brand
and high quality food, clothing and home products (Marksandspencer 2018). M&S is a
market leader of Menswear, Lingerie and Womenswear. They have different store
formats such as outlets, online services, home stores, core shops and hospitality
outlets(Marksandspencer 2018).
The main geographical areas covered with stores and online presence by Marks
and Spencer are Europe, Asia and the Middle East. Recently, Marks & Spencer has
made efforts for developing the food range. The company has developed as they have

Bloggs_J_s0123456_JV3301_Assessment001
reduced campylobacter in the poultry as endorsed by the Food Standards Agency. M&S
has worked with the University of Reading to explore if it was possible to feed cows with
natural diet so that they could naturally produce less saturated fat milk
(Marksandspencer 2018).
Functional Areas
Be it a small or large organization, separate functional areas must be identified
as people work together in departments. The different functional areas of Marks &
Spencer are stated as under:
Sales and marketing- This functional area are involved in achieving targets linked
to increasing sales or developing new markets. As M&S also operates online, this
functional area needs to notify staffs of their delivery schedules. The marketing function
helps in satisfying customer needs using the 4P marketing mix (Marksandspencer
2018).
Human resources- The human resources are involved in arranging staff training
activities where the employees are able to develop their career path. The continuous
professional development of all the staffs is managed by the human resources. M&S
employees have to attend induction programme in which they are explained their rights,
responsibilities and requirements in the business (Marksandspencer 2018).
Finance- The financial department at M&S aim at keeping the costs low and
profitability high. M&S requires a regular stream of income for paying its large employee
base and other partners. The finance function helps in achieving specific objectives and

Bloggs_J_s0123456_JV3301_Assessment001
aims, updating the technology at M&S or fulfilling objectives related to growth
(Marksandspencer 2018).
No functional area works in isolation. All the functional areas at M&S are
responsible for different functions. There is constant communication and cooperation
among the functions of the organization to operate effectively.
Role of a Manager
A manager can be defined as a person who overlooks the functions in an
organization. The manager acts as a bridge between the senior management and
operational department by translating the goals and higher-level strategies. The
functions of the manager also involve training new employees, staffing, hiring, dealing
with terminations and employee issues, goal-setting and planning. The managers need
to possess leadership, collaboration and communication skills for managing the
functions in an organization(Chiu, Balkundi, and Weinberg 2017).
As Marks & Spencer is a retail chain, the manager role plays a vital role as they
need to recruit, train, supervise and appraise staff. The manager plays the role of
managing budgets so that there can be profitability in the organization. The manager at
M&S oversees the pricing and stock control. The Clothing and Home section manager
intends to create a fantastic shopping experience that can help in building profits. The
food section manager help in creating high standards in the innovative food range. The
manager helps in maintaining hygiene and safety for hitting sales target. The finance
and operations section manager shall help in delivering financial improvements
(Marksandspencer 2018).

Bloggs_J_s0123456_JV3301_Assessment001
Change Management
Change can be defined as transition that can help in transforming the current
scenario. Change management can be defined as a systematic approach to dealing
with the transformation of the processes, goals or technologies. The main goal of
change management strategies is to implement, manage and control change. The
managers play multiple roles in managing change in an organization. Firstly, the
managers play the role of communicator in which the employees hear the messages
about their work and the ways in which their team shall be affected from the change.
The manager also advocate for the change in which the employees look up to their
supervisors for directly communicating messages and evaluating the level of support
generated from the employees (Marksandspencer 2018).
M&S shall coach its employees while supporting them in the process of change.
The managers play a crucial role in managing resistance coming from the employees at
the retail outlet chain. The manager at M&S also plays the role of an enabler in which
the change management plans are customized. The managers at M&S also conduct
reinforcement for sustaining the change (Cameron and Green 2015).
Conclusion
Conclusively, Marks & Spencer has reached its epitome of success by managing
the large employee base effectively. M&S is a market leader of Menswear, Lingerie and
Womenswear. As M&S also operates online, this functional area needs to notify staffs
of their delivery schedules. The continuous professional development of all the staffs is
managed by the human resources. There is constant communication and cooperation

Bloggs_J_s0123456_JV3301_Assessment001
among the functions of the organization to operate effectively. The manager acts as a
bridge between the senior management and operational department by translating the
goals and higher-level strategies.

Bloggs_J_s0123456_JV3301_Assessment001
References
Cameron, E. and Green, M., 2015. Making sense of change management: A complete
guide to the models, tools and techniques of organizational change. Kogan Page
Publishers.
Chiu, C.Y.C., Balkundi, P. and Weinberg, F.J., 2017. When managers become leaders:
The role of manager network centralities, social power, and followers' perception of
leadership. The Leadership Quarterly, 28(2), pp.334-348.
Marksandspencer, 2018. Food Research & Technical Innovation. [online] Marks and
Spencer. Available at: <https://corporate.marksandspencer.com/plan-a/food-and-
household/food-research-and-technical-
innovation#e13e44e84ecf4674b278f5225da7d255> [Accessed 25 Apr. 2018].
Marksandspencer.com, 2018. Section Manager Roles | M&S Careers. [online]
Careers.marksandspencer.com. Available at:
<http://careers.marksandspencer.com/careers-at-m-and-s/in-store/section-manager>
[Accessed 25 Apr. 2018].